Last week, the House Appropriations Committee passed two bills that contained much needed funding for California’s 15^th district that I secured: the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Transportation and Housing Appropriations bills for Fiscal Year 2010. With the unemployment rate rising in Santa Clara County and throughout California, and the state facing an economic crisis, if there is federal funding available – in assistance for job training, educational programs, social services, and affordable housing – I have made sure my constituents are receiving it.

The following is a list of the projects I secured funding for in the bills:

• $368,000 for California Construction College (City College of San Jose): This pilot program is a partnership between the National Labor College, City College of San Jose and the construction industry. It offers multiple educational pathways for Journeymen to earn a bachelor's degree to prepare for a career in construction management particularly important in this economy.

• $284,200 for Childcare Quality Assessment and Improvement Program (City of San Jose): This project will help to fund the development, implementation, and evaluation of a pilot program at 40-50 childcare sites in low-income communities across the city. The study will assess quality and execution of improvement plans to expand the “Smart Start” model. This will improve access to care that helps children develop the cognitive, language, and social skills needed for academic and social success.

• $300,000 for Community Home Partnership Program (Santa Clara Family Health Plan): The Community Home Partnership Program (CHPP) at Santa Clara Family Health Plan was created to support the former residents of Agnews Developmental Center. The move from an institutional setting is challenging and stressful for the medically fragile, severely developmentally disabled patients and their families. This funding will help to develop a model to transfer these vulnerable patients in the least stressful, most cost effective manner possible.

• $292,000 for Enterprise Master Patient Index and Smart Cards (Santa Clara Valley Health and Hospital System): This project will benefit the public by helping fund an electronic patient index capable of providing patient identification across all Santa Clara Valley Health and Hospital systems. This will ensure streamlined coordination of information throughout all SCVHHS health records, providing for more consistent patient treatment and follow up care.

• $180,000 for Global Student Learning Passport (Franklin McKinley School District): The project fosters a unique Silicon Valley partnership between three school districts, industry, higher education, and educational foundations. It will benefit the community by creating a support system of best practices that enables each student to successfully finish college and be prepared for a career. This pilot program will assist each child in maximizing her or his maximum potential by assessing each child’s individual needs. The “Global Student Passport” created for each student will enable schools to harness the existing support systems to meet each student’s needs and guarantee success up through the first year of college helping to close the achievement gap.

• $300,000 for Health Technology & Quality Improvement Project (Indian Health Center of Santa Clara County): This funding will help to implement an electronic health record system for the Indian Health Center of Santa Clara Valley. The IHC is a Federally Qualified Health Center and as such serves low income and uninsured residents of the County in addition to the American Indian/Alaska Native community. This project will more efficiently deliver services, improve data collection, and enable the IHC to meet the growing demands of the community.

• $200,000 for K-12 Education Improvement Through Innovative Hands-on Learning (Resources Area for Teachers): Using a sustainable, scalable model, Resource Area for Teaching will reward teachers for making professional development a priority, for improving skills in hands-on teaching techniques, and helping to bring out the full potential of all students. This project benefits the community by identifying, motivating, and recognizing some of California’s most innovative and resourceful teachers. In addition, it will enable thousands of outstanding teachers to efficiently share their best practices with peers and serve as desperately needed role models and mentors.

• $250,000 for Student Risk Assessment & Management Protocol Project (San Jose Unified School District): The Student Risk Assessment & Management Protocol (RAMP) longitudinal data management project provides for early and more accurate identification of students at-risk of school failure and is an innovative model for strategic delivery of evidence-based interventions to increase graduation rates. The student dropout rate continues to rise at alarming rates in both Santa Clara County and state-wide. Given limited resources to address a wide range of issues and extensive needs, this project enables school districts to develop their capacity to intervene early and effectively with students to deter student failure and prevent dropouts.

• $226,000 for School Partnerships Expansion Program (Project Cornerstone): This project will expand Project Cornerstone’s School Partnerships Program to provide access for more young people in Santa Clara County to the experiences, relationships, and values they need to thrive academically and socially. The project will provide programs, training, and technical assistance to schools on developmental assets essential to student success. The project expands the School Partnerships Program to include 25 additional schools and supporting the development of culturally and linguistically appropriate outreach materials will reach 25,000 additional residents and adults who work with the children and youth in the District.

• $240,000 for Eden Housing Affordable Housing Complex: This project will renovate 24 units of affordable housing in California’s 15th District in San Jose, serving disabled people with an average annual salary of $13,079. This project will perform necessary renovations that will benefit 24 low-income families in San Jose and extend the useful life of these affordable housing complexes.

• $700,000 for Housing Trust of Santa Clara County: This request is for a revolving loan fund for first-time homebuyers with incomes from 60% to 120% of Area Median Income. Loans range from $6,500 to $35,000 and assist households with closing costs, down payment and mortgage assistance. Given the high cost of housing in California's 15th district, this will expand homeownership in the district.

• $250,000 for Martial Cottle Park (Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation): This project will provide families, youths, and individuals with new opportunities for experiencing outdoor education, outdoor recreation, and sustainable agriculture. This project offers a wealth of community benefits, which includes connecting children and youth to the outdoor environment and their food source, providing locally-grown foods to the community, enhancing community identity, and improving overall quality of life for the residents and visitors of Santa Clara County.

In addition to this funding, I was able to include language in the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education bill passed out of the committee to establish a national Educational Opportunity and Equity Commission based on my previously sponsored legislation (H.R. 1758). For more information on this commission, please click here.